8 Best Kids’ Bikes (2024): Balance, Pedal, Coaster

Most individuals suppose I bike with my kids as a result of I like train or as a result of I wish to fight climate change. Neither is true (or, all the reply, at any charge). No, it is simply that sitting in pickup or drop-off traces in a automobile makes me wish to yeet myself straight into the trail of an oncoming 18-wheeler. Now that my youngsters are 7 and 9, and sufficiently old to bike with me, it is also far more enjoyable to look at them hop curbs and swing their legs and shout, “We stay in a jungle!” than it’s, once more, to attend for site visitors lights to alter.

The WIRED Gear staff has many youngsters, and we enlisted a lot of them to check these youngsters’ bikes on rides to high school, on the paths, or across the park. These are our high picks for each age and dimension. Do not see a motorcycle to your child right here? Tell us, as we’ll proceed to check and replace these picks. And for those who’re on the lookout for a motorcycle for your self, take a look at our Best Electric Bikes, Best Cheap Ebikes, and Best Electric Cargo Bikes for Families guides.

Up to date September 2024: We added the Early Rider Bella Velio, the Linus Lil Roadster, and the Cleary Meerkat, and added a slide on steadiness bikes. We additionally up to date hyperlinks and costs.

Particular provide for Gear readers: Get WIRED for just $5 ($25 off). This contains limitless entry to WIRED.com, full Gear protection, and subscriber-only newsletters. Subscriptions assist fund the work we do day by day.

The way to Purchase a Children’ Bike

Bikes are costly. It is tempting to future-proof your buy by shopping for a motorcycle a dimension or two greater, to your little one to develop into. Don’t fall into this entice! Not solely is it uncomfortable, it is unsafe. How would you anticipate to manage a motorcycle that was two sizes too large for you?

Sizing by age vary can also be dangerous; for instance, my 9-year-old daughter is half the scale of a few of her friends (sorry, sweetie). To seek out the right dimension, you will both should measure your child’s top or their minimal inseam size. Youngsters’s bikes are measured by wheel dimension, so a 12-inch bike refers to a motorcycle with 12-inch wheels, and so forth. If you get the bike, see in case your little one can stand over the body with flat ft comfortably on the bottom. Ensure that your little one can get on and off simply and that their palms can attain the brakes and shifters if the bike has them.

Different elements you may wish to take into account: